Inspired by his decades-long love of cars, internationally bestselling author Linwood Barclay envisions a world in which automotive technology outpaces our wildest dreams—and our darkest nightmares— in a gripping new novel of action and suspense.
These headlights are watching you…
The media have descended on Garrett Island, a small, isolated community that is the setting of a visionary experiment. All the residents’ cars were sent to the mainland and for the past month the islanders have been “driving” the Arrival, a revolutionary autonomous vehicle. With a simple voice command, an Arrival will take you wherever you want to go and, because the fleet is networked and aware of one another, car travel is now 100% safe. The future, it seems, has arrived.
As the excitement reaches a fever pitch, Sandra Montrose – islander, single mom, and public relations executive – prepares for Arrival Inc.’s flashy press event. Sandra is more than ready for this new world. Her husband died after falling asleep at the wheel and she’s relieved that her two teens, Archie and Katie, will never need driver’s licenses.
But as the celebratory day gets underway, disaster strikes. A visiting journalist has vanished, possibly murdered. Before long, the Arrivals run amok, no longer taking orders from their passengers. They’re starting to organize. They’re beginning to hunt. And they seem hell-bent on killing any human they encounter.
Is this all just a tragic accident, a technological malfunction with deadly consequences? Or were the vehicles programmed to act this way in a cruel act of corporate sabotage? Or could it be that the Arrivals have a mind of their own?
Fasten your seatbelts – it’s going to be a bumpy ride.
Book Info: Print length: 381 pages. Publisher: HQ. Publication Date: 9 June 2022
Linwood Barclay, a New York Times bestselling author with twenty novels to his credit, spent three decades in newspapers before turning full time to writing thrillers. His books have been translated into more than two dozen languages, sold millions of copies, and he counts Stephen King among his fans. Many of his books have been optioned for film and TV, a series has been made in France, and he wrote the screenplay for the film based on his novel Never Saw it Coming. Born in the US, his parents moved to Canada just as he was turning four, and he’s lived there ever since. He lives near Toronto with his wife, Neetha. They have two grown children.
My Review:
I’d recently lost my reading mojo and was struggling to find something to read that would keep me entertained and then I remembered LINWOOD BARCLAY and realised I had his latest 3 books on my kindle so I randomly chose LOOK BOTH WAYS to read next.
This is slightly different to the previous books I’ve read by Linwood Barclay as it’s more of a techo thriller with a futuristic spin. The community of Garrett Island, off the coast of Massachusetts have agreed to be the guinea pigs for a new car company Arrival Inc. They have created a brand new electric car which is 100% autonomous, responding to voice commands and providing the “passengers” a safe journey as each car is networked through software which enables them to communicate with each other.
Arrival Inc has arranged a huge press event to showcase their cars which is being managed by Sandra Montrose, a PR executive, resident of Garrett Island, single mum and recent widower. This project could turn her life around as it’s so high profile, but being a Barclay thriller, you know that something is about to go terribly wrong.
Firstly a journalist disappears whilst travelling across the water on the island’s ferry, then someone hacks into the car’s software and then.. ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE..
I’m not going to spoil anything for you, but I will tell you that I will NEVER, EVER, EVER get in a driverless car. I don’t even use the cruise control on my own car, but this book has confirmed my worst fears.. technology in the wrong hands is very, very dangerous.
LOOK BOTH WAYS was exactly what I need to recharge my reading mojo. It’s gripping, exciting, fast paced, full of action and has a couple of super little twists within the storyline. It’s an easy read which kept me completely entertained throughout and I would definitely recommend it.
